Are you kidding? I have most of Joan Baez's albums. Peter, Paul, and Mary's too. I've seen them twice.
I never saw Joan Baez, but I saw Judy Collins before she became famous. She played at a "hootenany." Afterwards my buddy said, not meaning to be unkind, "She walks like a duck but boy can she sing!" Judy Collins walked unsteadily owing to polio as a child.
I've seen the Kingston Trio on stage.
I've seen John Denver twice, once with a band and once solo. Both times he appeared in the largest stadium in Portland, which was big enough for a three ring circus, and filled the house. He lost NOTHING without the band. He was an outstanding guitarist and accompanied himself.
John Denver came out to visit a place called Bagby Hotsprings, which included a small rustic hotbath in a hollowed out cedar log and a few small buildings. It was a walk of about a mile in from the road. Bagby Hotsprings was locally famous on the Ranger District where I worked in Portland. When John Denver came to visit, the ranger and law enforcement officer rushed out and waited three hours for him to land his helicopter on a road. When he finally arrived, they walked into the hotsprings with him. He was a pretty decent chap, by all accounts. My favorite song of his is "The Garden Song." I often use it to illustrate forestry principles.
Inch by Inch,
Row by Row,
Gotta make your garden grow
All it takes is a rake and a hoe,
And a piece of fertile ground.
I love "If I Had a Hammer." I used to sing it with my guitar around the campfire. Along with "Where Have All the Flowers Gone," and several others of PPM.
I didn't perceive those songs as political, and I believe in the ethic they teach. I don't feel that they are in conflict at all with my conservative political beliefs, but I fear the artists would be appalled to know that. I feel quite certain that they are NOT conservatives.
My daughter grew up to become a conservative too. If you knew her as a kid, you wouldn't believe it. |
